Apple announced today that their new App Store designed specifically for the Mac is now open for business. The Mac App Store is available on any Mac running Apple’s Snow Leopard operating system. With the Mac App Store, Apple is trying to recreate the huge App Store success they have had with the iPhone and iPad which currently boasts over 300,000 applications.

“With more than 1,000 apps, the Mac App Store is off to a great start,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We think users are going to love this innovative new way to discover and buy their favorite apps.”

The Mac App Store was announced late last year and was seen by many as a way to extend the current iOS developers ability to sell their apps throughout the entire Apple ecosystem. Users can browse, search and buy apps across a broad range of categories similar to what’s available in the App Store for the iPhone and iPad.

Current iPad and iPhone users will immediately be familiar with the Mac App Store. Apple will feature apps in a “Noteworthy”, “Staff Favorites” and a “What’s Hot” section of the Mac App Store, similar to what is currently available for iOS apps in the App Store.

The app purchase process is similar to the iPad and iPhone experience. Users simply find an app they want, click on it and the app will begin downloading and install itself on a users Mac automatically. After an app has been purchased, the Mac App Store will notify user’s when updates become available.

The Mac App Store is available in 90 countries and features both free and paid applications. To begin using the Mac App Store users will need the latest software update which is part of OS X 10.6.6.

Full Press Release:

Apple’s Mac App Store Opens for Business

CUPERTINO, California—January 6, 2011—Apple® today announced that the Mac® App Store℠ is now open for business with more than 1,000 free and paid apps. The Mac App Store brings the revolutionary App Store experience to the Mac, so you can find great new apps, buy them using your iTunes® account, download and install them in just one step. The Mac App Store is available for Snow Leopard® users through Software Update as part of Mac OS® X v10.6.6.

“With more than 1,000 apps, the Mac App Store is off to a great start,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We think users are going to love this innovative new way to discover and buy their favorite apps.”

The Mac App Store offers apps in Education, Games, Graphics & Design, Lifestyle, Productivity, Utilities and other categories. Users can browse new and noteworthy apps, find out what’s hot, see staff favorites, search categories and look up top charts for paid and free apps, as well as user ratings and reviews.

Entirely new apps, as well as current Mac favorites, are available from developers such as Autodesk, Ancestry.com and Boinx. iPhoto®, iMovie® and GarageBand® apps from Apple’s popular iLife® ‘11 suite are available individually in the Mac App Store for $14.99 each, and Pages®, Keynote® and Numbers® apps from iWork® are available for $19.99 each. Aperture® 3, Apple’s powerful photo editing and management software, is available for $79.99.

“We’re delighted to bring our professional-grade paint and drawing app, Autodesk SketchBook Pro, to the Mac App Store on its first day of launch,” said Carl Bass, Autodesk’s CEO. “We’ve seen tremendous success on the Mac, iPhone and iPad with multiple apps. We’re excited to offer SketchBook Pro on the Mac App Store so artists can easily create everything from quick sketches to high-quality artwork right on their Macs.”

“By offering the Ancestry.com Family Tree Maker app on the Mac App Store, we’re making it even easier for people to discover and access their family history,” said Tim Sullivan, Ancestry.com’s CEO. “The Mac App Store will drive a new generation of innovation on the Mac platform.”

“We’re thrilled to have our award-winning animation, video production and photography software available on the new Mac App Store,” said Oliver Breidenbach, Boinx Software’s CEO. “The Mac App Store makes it easier than ever for consumers to access all the innovative software designed for the Mac.”

To get the Mac App Store, download the Mac OS X v10.6.6 Software Update or visit www.apple.com/mac/app-store. To find out more about developing for the Mac App Store visit developer.apple.com/programs/mac.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.